The Educator's Professional Growth Plan 2/e

Jodi Peine is recently retired after 33 years in education. The last 13 years of her career were spent as a principal and Director of Curriculum and Instruction at Community Unit School District 702 in Tremont, Illinois. Jodi is also an adjunct college instructor and has presented at national and regional educational conferences on such topics as staff development, the professional growth plan, school leadership, supervision and curriculum, and the arts in education. She currently serves as an independent consultant to school districts.

Preface Acknowledgments Introduction 1. Professional Growth: Defining the What, Why, Who, and How What Is Professional Growth? What Is a Professional Growth Plan? What Is the Professional Growth Plan Process? Why Use the Professional Growth Plan Process? Who Can Use a Growth Plan? Who Can Lead the Professional Growth Plan Process? How to Implement the Professional Growth Plan Process Successfully Encouraging New Traditions in Professional Growth 2. Managing the Professional Growth Plan Process Operational Issues Allocating Resources Available Resources vs. Needs? - A Balancing Act Who Has the Time? Organizing People, Events, and Information Forms? - How Can They Help? Introducing the Process to Staff The School Leader as Coach and Advisor 3. Identifying Areas for Professional Growth The First of Four Phases Targeting Professional Growth Conducting a Personal Needs Assessment Comparing Current Practices to Established Professional Performance Standards/Best Practice Research Review and Understand Professional Performance Standards and Best Practices Research The Self-Assessment Activity Examining Relevant Student Performance Data Facilitating Data Analysis Linking Practice and Performance Addressing Deficiencies and Discrepancies Needs - Assessment and the School Leader The Needs - Assessment Conference The Needs Assessment Conference Record 4. Designing the Professional Growth Plan The Second Phase: Plan Design Guiding the Design Process Establishing Professional Goals Establishing Learner-Centered Goals Can Goals Change? Establishing the Questions Creating the Essential Question Creating Related Questions Designing an Action Plan Identifying Modes of Documentation Documentation: A Product and a Process Identifying Baseline Data Defining Methods of Evaluation Identifying Resource Needs Choosing a Method for Sharing Results With the Learning Community Finalizing the Growth Plan 5. Professional Growth Plans in Progress Implementation and Monitoring Monitoring the Process Formal Monitoring: Progress Meetings Informal Monitoring: Listening, Watching, Visiting Deciding What Is Not Working and Why Interim Sharing: What Has Happened so Far? Troubleshooting? What Happens If. . . . Preparing for the Final Phase 6. Completing the Growth Plan Process Plan Evaluation Growth Plan Summary Activities Summarizing the Growth Plan Experience? What Happened? The Growth Plan Summary Conference Evaluating Documentation of Professional Growth Sharing With the Learning Community Wrapping Up the Professional Growth Plan Process 7. The Process Continues Second Generation Plans and Beyond Impediments to the Process Changes in Personnel Inconsistent Implementation Lack of Administrative Support The Demands of Compliance Directives and Documentation The Professional Growth Plan Process Is School Improvement The School Leader as Mechanic and Change Agent Appendix A: School Leader Blacklines Appendix B: Participant Blacklines References Index

"Offers the school leader a well-organized and effective plan. Reveals that true professional growth occurs through systematic reflection and analysis of one's strengths and weaknesses." -- Bonnie Watson, Writing Lab Coordinator "A practical, comprehensive, up-to-date resource that empowers teachers and administrators to transform their schools into results-oriented professional learning communities. Peine's differentiated growth plan accommodates the unique needs and capabilities of both the administrator and the teacher. I highly recommend this book as a staff development text for any district." -- Lynda Hootman, Teacher Educator "Takes readers through a process of professional growth and planning that is fully grounded in best practice. The second edition provides important insights on ways to sustain the professional growth process after the initial stages of implementation. A must-read for practicing administrators, teachers, and graduate students preparing to be administrators." -- Jenny Tripses, Associate Professor of Educational Leadership "Outlines a systematic method that helps professional educators focus their energies on lasting professional growth. Strategies and templates assist in guiding teachers to reflect on their own professional performance, set their own learning targets, and manage their own progress towards greater professional success." -- Scott Estes, Principal